Hi there and welcome to the BrisStyle Inc. community blog. BrisStyle Inc. is a community group of artists and crafters who live in and around Brisbane. We work to provide support and creative opportunities for our members through workshops, business and creative development sessions, markets (come and meet the makers), exhibitions and social get-togethers. Head over to our website www.brisstyle.com.au for more information.

Monday, August 20, 2012

Selling Online Wrap!

Arty instagram images of the day courtesy of @gita

Brisbane creative's turned out in force for the Selling Online Creative Development Session on Saturday. Due to popular demand for personalised stories, we featured four local successful online sellers to share their journey's and top tips.

We also had a visit from Sharon, Akhila and Peter from Australia Post who gave some very handy shipping tips!

Here are the TOP 10 Tips from the day:

Just do it!:: Choose an online selling platform that suits your style and audience and go for it. Online selling sites make it super easy these days to get started for those with the most basic computer skills.

Light's camera action :: A picture paints a thousand words so make sure your's are clear, crisp and reflect your style. Your descriptions should be informative and concise. Be whimsical if that's your style but make sure they give all the key information. (Turn your image challenges into perfection and book into our Sept 15 Photography session here.)

Talkin' 'bout an evolution :: Once you're up and running you can evolve your style. Go to your favourite sellers site and click on their sold items and take the journey back to where they started. See how their images and designs have evolved to be the successful inspiring brand that they are today.

Love thy customer :: Online selling is all about building relationships, so find ways of connecting with every customer. Social Media can give you many tools to achieve this so whether it's facebook, twitter, instagram, pintrest or your your own personal blog or newsletter, take the time to get to know your fans and make new ones.

Share the love :: Build up a mailing list to inform, entertain and inspire. Whether it be collecting names from your market stalls or on the side bar of your blog or website, e- ewsletters are a fabulous way for keeping your customer connection strong and your online sales consistent.

Wow them every time :: Gorgeous packaging that reflects your creative style, gifts with purchase, discounts of their next sale are all ways of building trust and custom for repeat business and loyal customers.

Ship ahoy :: Invest as much time into researching postage options as you would in finding new materials. Invest in a good set of scales and buy your post packs in bulk to save time and money.

Get connected :: Follow blogs and other social media threads of those crafty peeps who inspire you. Join a craft guild, group or community who are supportive and giving to help nurture you through the early stages of your hobby and give you the confidence to see all your crafty aspirations fulfilled.

Dream on :: In this ever changing world of technology there are new and exciting ways to take your brand of creativity to the world. Louise and Belinda from iSewAcademy have launched a first with their new app and want to share the love with others to develop their own too.

Love what you do :: Remember, that you are unique and to treasure your creativity at every step of the online selling process. With the world wide web being so wast you can touch the lives of millions through your creativity. So love what you do, treasure the journey, celebrate the wins and learn from any challenges. Craft on and prosper!